Dragonlance: The Annotated Chronicles Volume III: Dragons of Spring Dawning

Written by: Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

The finale.  It all built to this.  Was it worth it?  Certainly.  What’s surprising though is that in such an epic tale, the epic battles are much more individual.  The stories are really about the characters acceptance for who they are and what their place is in the universe.  To that level, there is a bit of letdown in terms of the war, as it just seems to…end…slightly abruptly.  But the characterizations make up for it in spades.

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Dragonlance: The Annotated Chronicles Volume II: Dragons of Winter Night

Written by: Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

The second act of a three act story is always the hardest.  It is by definition a set up.  We’ve already been introduced to most of the main characters, and yet we don’t have the final climactic events to end the saga.  Therefore what are we left with.  The tale that takes our main characters and bring them far enough along yet not to completion.  It’s toughest to end.  To find a satisfying conclusion that leaves the rest open for discussion yet is not completely without hope.

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Dragonlance: The Lost Chronicles: Dragons of the

Highlord Skies

Written by: Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis

While the story is not as easily and naturally set up for placement as the storyline for Volume 1, it is a both a decently important and entertaining story to tell.

As can be gleamed from the title, this novel fills us in on what Kitiara was up to when she sent the note saying she would not make it back to Solace as they all had sworn. Set up as a tale of Tanis Half-Elven’s two loves, Kitiar and Laurana, we see Kit’s early days as a Highlord. It’s a very intriguing tale as we see her relationship with her dragon Skie really take off and in truth we see her rise to power enough to later challenege Ariakas, the leader of the Dragon Highlords.
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Dragonlance: The Lost Chronicles: Dragons of the Dwarven Depths

Written by: Tracy Hickman & Margaret Weis

When a “midquel” is planned, it is usually for one reason. Money. It’s usually a tale that while sometimes entertaining, often feels shoehorned between two stories. There are often contradictions and since it has been so long since the story, the author’s styles have changed greatly.

So how does the first volume of the Lost Chronicles do with that in mind? It does well despite a few of the same problems.

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Dragonlance: The Annotated Chronicles Volume I:

Dragons of Autumn Twilight

by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

A labor of true love which sets a steady foundation for a rousing epic tale of faith, devotion, and of course good vs. evil.

To be honest this book should have been awful. It was written by two first time authors who were chronicling what happened as they played Dungeons and Dragons. And certainly there are flaws in the novel, where it’s almost too simple, characters almost too archetypal.

But notice I said almost.

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Dragonlance: Raistlin Chronicles: Brothers In Arms

by Margaret Weis and Don Perrin

When demand is so great, supplies usually increase to the point of oversaturation. Such is the case with the second part of the Raistlin Chronicles. Raistlin was easily the most popular character in the original Dragonlance Chronicles. This was with both the fans and the creators alike. That is why Dragonlance Legends trilogy focused on the twins. That is why demand was so great to know the origins of Raistlin, leading to the creation of Soulforge.

And now comes Brothers In Arms, a story that takes place between the events in Soulforge and the original Chronicles Trilogy. And it is not a bad book by any means. It simply doesn’t seem necessary. One wonders if Margaret Weis actually felt the same way at the time, considering that half of the book is about the whereabouts of Raistlin’s half-sister Kitiara uth Matar.

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Dragonlance: Raistlin Chronicles: Soulforge

by Margaret Weis

This book must have been both exciting and terrifying to write. The character that had the most impact from the whole Dragonlance saga was the bitter mage, Raistlin. It always seems that it is the tale of the fallen hero that intrigues audiences. Much like Darth Vader in Star Wars, everyone had clamored to see the origins of the character who had such potential, yet fell to such depths along the way.

So Margaret knew the expectations going in, and furthermore, knew that everyone had their own imaginations filling in the story, and it is rare when one can compete with imagination. Ask George Lucas.

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Dragonlance: Dragons of Autumn Twilight

Starring the voices of: Michael Rosenbaum, Keifer Sutherland, Lucy Lawless, and Jason Marsden

Written by: George Strayton Based on the novel by: Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman

Directed by: Will Meugniot

I grew up with the Dragonlance Saga. In fact, in the near future you may see more reviews of the novels from this epic storyline. When I heard there was going to be a Dragonlance film project, I was excited at the prospect of seeing it on the big screen. This was right after Lord of the Rings, so I knew that if given the proper care and attention this could be fabulous.

Then I heard it was going to be animated. At first I was disappointed, but then I grew excited to realize they could do so much more for so much cheaper so ultimately it might be a great project still.

Then I heard the cast. Keifer Sutherland voicing Raistlin? Perfect! Lucy Lawless and Michael Rosenbaum. This could be definitely be worth my time.

Then I heard it was going to straight to DVD and that it was approximately 90+ minutes.

Uh-oh.

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